Birthday Luck
by Michie Fang
Summary: Miku's birthday surprise, courtesy of her family and friends: Hiyama Kiyoteru, Kagamine Rin and Len, MEIKO, Megurine Luka, KAITO, and Kaai Yuki. Five chapters of pure fluffiness.
1. Part 1

******DISCLAIMER: I do not own Vocaloid. Or their songs.**

**Here's my birthday tribute to our favorite diva. **

**I realize that this is three days late (in my time zone), but let's ignore that. In my defense, this is placed yesterday, the day after her birthday - so I'm really only two days late. And I've been dealing with school. So . . . yeah.**

**Never mind. Those are weak defenses. I'm sorry, Miku. *bows***

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Birthday Luck - Part 1

"Cut!"

I gratefully stood up and stretched, yawning widely.

"That's good enough, for now," the director sighed. "Miku, what will we do with you?"

Well, excuse me for being tired and crabby at eight o'clock in the morning.

"A day off would be great," I cheerily replied.

He wearily ran a hand through his graying hair, checked the time on his gigantic Quartz watch, and then relented, "Technically, I'm not allowed to do this, but since you're obviously not intending to make this day easy, what do you say about getting the rest of the day off?"

Skillfully hiding my surprise, I lifted my chin and thrust my chest out. "I say that it's only to be expected. After all, I _am_ the princess."

Actually, the princess was trapped in a maze in an icy, dark castle with no way out – not exactly worthy of any envy. But I chose to ignore that fact.

All the crew members, who had obviously been eavesdropping, cheered.

"Thanks, Miku!" yelled Miriam, my make-up artist.

"You're welcome!" I yelled back, curtsying in their general direction.

"You're only a princess in the _movie_," a voice said from behind me. I whirled around to see Hiyama Kiyoteru, the lead actor, holding a bowl of shaved ice. "You have to admit, she's pretty pathetic. And in reality, you're a wannabe diva. Tell me, how is either of those a desirable role?" He smirked and slowly lifted his spoon to his lips, sliding the ice into his open mouth.

I felt my face grow hot and prayed that it wasn't red.

"Don't tease your partner," the director scolded him. "She's tired. Actually, I'm sorry that I didn't give you the day off on your birthday. That was yesterday, right?"

I froze. "How'd you know that?"

"Please," Kiyoteru scoffed. "You should be used to this right now – nothing in your life is private. Have you never heard of media? Or fans?"

"I have, thank you very much. They're something I have and you don't," I calmly retorted, tying my long teal hair into two pigtails.

"You deserved that," Miriam said as she passed by. She patted Kiyoteru on the head, like he was a little kid. "And she does have more than you."

Ignoring them, I slung my bag over my head so that its strap crossed from my right shoulder down to my left hip. Then I put on my dark sunglasses, tied the pigtails into a bun, and put on a beige beanie. I always hated going out in disguise, but my hair was just too obvious.

"Then, director, I'll be leaving. Thanks for the vacation!"

He blew me a kiss and waved good-bye. The rest of crew followed his example. I set out at a brisk walk, heading back home.

My bodyguards, Leon and Lola Zero, trailed me, trying to be as inconspicuous as two beautiful, blonde foreigners could possibly be.

I was exhausted. Who knew acting could be so tiring? It was pretty lucky that the director decided to be nice and give us the rest of the day off.

"Hey, Miku!"

Internally, I groaned and prayed that the voice didn't belong to who I thought it belonged to. I sped up a little.

"Miku!"

I sped up again.

A hand latched onto my wrist and spun me around, bringing me face-to-face with Kiyoteru. As a disguise, he wore glasses and a brown hoodie.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm walking you home, of course." He rolled his eyes like it was obvious.

"What if I don't want to be walked home?"

"You're stuck with me."

I sighed and linked my arm with his, leaning against him.

"W-What are you doing?" he stuttered. "Do you know what would happen if we stumbled across any paparazzi right now?"

"Calm down. We're in disguise. I'm tired. I need sleep. Gosh, I've been dreaming of taking nap for so long . . . do you know what five hours of sleep every night can do to a girl?"

"Um, no. But you asked for it."

"Technically, I agreed without knowing what I was getting myself into. I'm a singer! I do not act!"

"I'm a singer too, and I act. You're not terrible."

I put my head against his shoulder, amazed by my own boldness. "That must be the first near-compliment you've ever given me."

"You're welcome."

"I wasn't thanking you."

"Don't worry about technicalities."

We arrived at a crossroads. Kiyoteru stopped, failing to notice that there were no cars in sight.

"Move it," I sighed, closing my eyes as we walked across the street. "By the way, what's with the hoodie? It's blazing hot outside."

"My bodyguard made me." He pointed his thumb behind us, where our bodyguards were walking side by side.

"He's new."

"Yeah – Al moved on to bigger and better things. But don't look down on him. Those noodle arms are freakishly strong. And he moves like a ghost, pops up out of nowhere."

"Name?"

"Utatane Piko."

"Leon and Lola Zero."

"I already knew that."

"Don't worry about technicalities."

He frowned.

I giggled and let go of his arm. "I think I feel more awake now. Thanks!"

"You're welcome. You never told me – what're your bodyguards like?"

"Oh, Lola's the silent type. But she takes care of me pretty well. And Leon is our clown and maid."

"Utatane-kun still won't let me use his first name."

"Well, they're foreigners, so it's a little different. Plus, we're family! It must be because you have a mom, and I don't."

"Yeah . . . so, how's your family doing?"

"Good, I guess. The twins have been acting up. I think they're planning something. And Meiko's drinking less, which is good but also suspicious."

"Is that so?" He cleared his throat and looked away. My apartment building came into sight.

"You can drop me off here, thanks," I said, stretching my arms and yawning.

"Nah, I'll walk you back to your door."

"If you insist." I rolled my eyes and pretended to be indifferent. Inside, I was jumping for joy.

So, I admit, I had a tiny crush on Kiyoteru. But why wouldn't I? Aside from his cluelessness and his tendency to make fun of me, he was a cool guy. Nobody's perfect.

"I bet I could beat you if we raced up those stairs," Kiyoteru suddenly said. I looked at the spiraling stairwell and gulped. My place was on the third floor.

"You mean - running?"

"What else?" he laughed.

"Miku and Running don't really-"

"Are you scared? Because we can just walk up, if you'd like," he interrupted. His eyes danced.

"I'm not scared," I quickly replied. "But next time, just challenge me outright. Don't play mind games." He was trying to make me angry, and it was working.

"How was that a mind game?"

"Ready-set-go!"

I shot upwards, ahead by five steps.

"No fair!"

"You should've been more alert!"

"You're a cheater!"

"Save your breath and run!"

He frowned and suddenly sped up, very quickly. My mouth fell open, and then closed, and my legs pumped up and down faster and faster. No way was I losing to him!

My foot touched the third floor a millisecond before his.

"I win!" I yelled, jumping excitedly.

"Did not!"

"Did too! You're a sore loser!"

"You cheat!"

We laughed and leaned against the outside railing.

"So that makes it seven to zero," I said.

"I definitely won at least once!"

"Fine, seven to one."

"No, six to one."

"Seven."

"I'll let you off this time, but only because you're a girl."

"Thanks for walking me home again," I exhaled, putting my hand against the door handle, "and for letting me off again."

"You're welcome. Are you going in?"

"What do you think?" I sarcastically asked, turning the doorknob.

He smirked again and muttered, "Have fun."

I rolled my eyes and pushed open the door.

Then the world exploded.

~=O=~

So, it didn't actually explode. In reality, _I _exploded.

"What the hell are you thinking?" I screeched, lifting my hands away from my still-ringing ears.

"Sorry," Rin sheepishly apologized.

"All we did was say, 'Happy Birthday'," grumbled Len.

"But you screamed it! Right in my ears!"

I glanced at the twins once, looked away, and then did a double take. Where were the usual sweatpants and T-shirts? Why was Rin wearing a skirt and a . . . blouse?

Wait – scratch that – why was she wearing _my_ blouse? And why was Len wearing _clean_ jeans?

"What's going on?" I asked suspiciously.

"Len, apologize." Rin nudged him in the side, completely ignoring my question.

"No!"

"But you're being-"

"I know, I know, I'm being rude. God, can't-"

"I'm tired," I cut in. "Good morning. I'm going to sleep. Thanks, Kiyoteru, for all that stuff I mentioned before."

"But you have to come with us," Rin exclaimed. "We're going to celebrate your birthday!"

"The one that was yesterday? No thanks. Besides, I already told you guys not to make it a big deal. Anyways, the company's throwing its annual birthday bash tomorrow."

"But Miku," Len whined. "Meiko even drank less for you, and Kiyoteru even agreed to play along. You'll have fun, we promise!"

"Agree already," Meiko said from her position in front of my bedroom door.

"Please?" Rin joined in. She widened her eyes.

Uh-oh.

I averted my gaze. "I'll be going to my room . . ." I trailed off as I remembered that Meiko was currently blocking the doorway. "This is blackmail!"

"Not really," said Kiyoteru.

"Shut up."

"Please?" Rin repeated. Her eyes got wider, somehow.

"Rin, you know, that attack doesn't work anymore . . . how the hell do they get so big? No! I will not be persuaded!"

I obstinately glared at the ceiling. Someone stepped on my foot. I instinctively wrenched the throbbing limb into the air and, consequently, was forced to lower my head.

"Ow! What the-"

Kiyoteru clapped a hand over my mouth and turned my head towards the twins, who were standing side by side, fixating me with those adorable azure eyes of theirs.

"Fine, fine!" I yelled in a muffled voice, glaring at Kiyoteru. He removed his hand. "I'll go! But you two have to promise never to gang up on me ever again."

"Eh? Why?"

Now that Len had gotten what he wanted, the cute façade had vanished.

"Are we going or not? I might change my mind. . . ."

"Let's go, then!" Meiko yelled, suddenly full of energy. She pushed me towards the open door of the apartment. "Move those legs!"

"I'm tired and lazy," I protested.

"Meiko, haven't you forgotten something?" Kiyoteru patiently reminded her.

She froze, as if remembering something, and then dashed away. I stumbled backwards and managed to catch myself on the doorway.

"Wait right there!" Meiko called from her bedroom. We could hear her banging and cursing as she searched for the missing item.

"Let me get my bag," Rin said, beaming.

Len mumbled something.

Rin's eyes narrowed. "Len, did you or did you not get everything ready last night like I told you to?"

He mumbled something else.

"Len! How could you?"

"How could you not notice? We share a room."

"Because you go to sleep at four in the – never mind, there's no time for this! Let's hurry. If I help, you'll pack faster!"

She dragged him into their room, ignoring his protests.

"How much could they need?" I muttered, readjusting my beanie.

"Got it!" Meiko yelled, running through her door, carrying a bright red backpack decorated with the caps of _sake_ bottles.

"There's so much One Cup Ozeki," Kiyoteru remarked.

"It's her favorite."

"Let's go, then!"

"Big sister, dear, your other two siblings are busy gathering their belongings."

"Len!" Rin shouted from inside their room.

I vaguely wondered what he could have done.

"Do you really think-" He collapsed into high-pitched giggles.

"Give it back!"

Rin stumbled past the threshold, her eyes watery. "Miku, Len stole my orange!"

"Hey, I'm the oldest here," Meiko protested as I took Rin's hand. "You should come to me for help."

Ignoring her, I led Rin into her room and immediately spotted a very useful item. Whooping with victory, I snatched up the banana.

"Trade," I said in an authoritative voice.

"My banana," Len gasped.

"You were so giddy that you forgot to guard your own precious snack. Drop the orange."

We slowly set the fruit down on the floor, warily eyeing each other.

"Go!" I yelled, running towards the orange. I picked it up just as Len reached the banana. "Here you go." I handed the orange to Rin. "Now you've got your snacks, and we can go on whatever trip you have planned."

"Thanks, Miku," Rin sniffled. Then, in the blink of an eye, her expression completely changed. "Now leave," she ordered.

"I just helped you!"

"But we're not done. Len, you leave too. You're no help."

She pushed us out, handed Len his dirty yellow backpack, and slammed the door in our faces.

I dutifully waited next to Kiyoteru, Meiko, and Len, who kept grumbling and tossing his banana into the air. Meiko started to complain about her dry throat.

Rin emerged from her room a few minutes later. A gigantic, bright yellow bag hung from one shoulder.

We gaped.

"That's too heavy," Len said, running over to her. "Put some stuff in my bag."

"I can handle it," she replied, disregarding his protests. "To the car!"

"There's a car?" I asked.

"Mine," answered Kiyoteru. "I'll be driving."

The two of us walked outside, followed by a complaining Meiko and the bickering twins. Our voices rose into the air as we shouted over each other.

"You can drive? You have a car?"

"Rin, you're a girl. Girls should be taken care of by guys!"

"Yes, I can drive. And I can certainly afford a car."

"I want water, or _sake_! Give me something to drink!"

"Len, you sexist pig! For your information, I am fine."

"What about the bodyguards? Will they follow in another car?"

"Girls are so stupid! Fine then! When you collapse from exhaustion, see if I care!"

"I sent away my bodyguard. Yours are relaxing in your apartment right now."

"When did you send them away? I never noticed anything."

"I'm thirsty!"

"Well, I won't collapse, because I can carry this much!"

And so on.

Around this time, we arrived at the car. It was sleek and dark blue. This was the extent of my knowledge of the subject.

"Where are we going?" I asked as I settled into the passenger seat. Meiko sat behind me, while Rin plopped herself into the middle seat, studiously ignoring her brother.

Kiyoteru handed Meiko a bottle of water and answered, "Somewhere special." He grinned widely, revealing one dimple and two rows of pearly white teeth.

I had to look away so he wouldn't see me blush.

* * *

**Yes, it's an awkward ending (my opinion), but it was the best place I could find. **

**Cookies to anyone who can figure out who's saying what in the patch of dialogue above. It shouldn't be hard. **

**Speaking of cookies - who else loves Pepperidge Farm?**

**The next part should be up tomorrow.**

******I really hope I don't dream about homework again. -_- School is slowly destroying my sanity. **

**Anyways, sweet dreams to all you wonderful people . . . **


	2. Part 2

******DISCLAIMER: I do not own Vocaloid. Or their songs.**

**No cookies to anyone. **

**But to my followers and favorites (you know who you are) and my reviewer: please accept my sincere thanks. You guys make my day. XD**

**Without further ado, here's Part 2! **

**Haha, that rhyme was completely unintended, but after writing it I decided to keep it there. **

**This time, for real - enjoy! **

* * *

Birthday Luck - Part 2

"The amusement park?"

"Yep," Len replied, jumping out the car and onto the hot pavement.

"The amusement park?" I repeated, stupidly gaping at the enormous gates looming over me.

"Yep," Rin echoed her brother.

"Th-"

"Oh, give it a rest," Kiyoteru clapping his hand over my mouth. "I know it doesn't seem that cool, but it's better when you consider the fact that we're the only ones here."

"And the fact that Miku's never been to an amusement park before," Len piped up.

I glowered at Kiyoteru and, when he didn't take the hint, licked his hand. He quickly pulled it away. Rin handed him a tissue, which he gratefully accepted.

"I have to admit," he added, wiping the spit off of his hand, "it was quite a surprise to learn that you've never been here before."

"I have!" I protested.

"But that was for a TV show," Rin pointed out. "And you had to act like you were having fun when you were really so nervous that your hands went numb."

"Remind me to stop telling you guys about my work."

"Don't worry," Meiko said, patting me on the back in a vaguely comforting manner. "You were young, just starting out as a singer, and not very confident. We want you to enjoy your time here today."

"Yeah, yeah." I waved them away.

"That's our girl," Rin cheekily declared, whipping out her cell-phone from somewhere in her bag. "Cheer up! It's closed today anyways – something about a funeral – so we asked the owner people if you could come here for your birthday. They said that they'd send someone to help. And it'll be completely private!" She quickly dialed a number and put the phone up to her ear.

"How'd you manage that?" I asked, not really expecting an answer.

As expected, Rin didn't seem to hear me. She walked a few feet away, muttering into her phone, "Yes, we're here. . . . That's fine and all, but it would still be great if you . . ."

Kiyoteru rolled his eyes and answered, "Well, since you seem to have forgotten, allow me to remind you that we are idols. I showed up at his doorstep, and Megurine-sun was more than happy to comply. Plus, his daughter is friend of mine."

"Megurine," I mumbled. That name sounded familiar. I glanced up at the plaque that adorned the top of the entrance gates. One word was in English. "Lucky . . . Luka!"

"That's right," Kiyoteru said approvingly, as if he were speaking to a toddler. "Megurine Luka's father owns this place. He named it after her, in a way."

I stuck my tongue out at him. He returned the gesture.

"She's almost here!" Rin yelled, running over.

"Who?" I asked.

"The person who's going to be our guide."

"And who exactly is that?"

She shrugged.

"Rin! For all we know, it could be some poor weirdo who's just doing this for some extra money, or for a chance to get our autographs."

"Well, I guess we'll find out pretty soon." She pointed at a black sports car that was turning into the empty parking lot.

Kiyoteru whistled appreciatively. "Expensive." Len eagerly nodded.

I shook my head. Boys. From this distance, I could barely make out the shape of the car's headlights, much less its brand.

We waited, apprehensively silent, as the car approached. It slid to a stop in front of us, tinted windows gleaming in the sunlight.

"At least we know it's not some poor weirdo," Kiyoteru muttered as one of the back doors opened. "It's way too expensive."

A gold boot appeared underneath the door, and then another boot and the hem of a black skirt. I held my breath as a pink-haired, blue-eyed girl stepped out of the car.

We gasped.

I was the first to speak.

"Megurine Luka?"

"That is my full name," she replied, smiling. "You must be Hatsune Miku. Kiyoteru's told me a lot about you."

"Luka!" Kiyoteru hissed. His face reddened slightly. I could barely believe my eyes. He was . . . blushing?

Either the world was coming to an end, or I was dreaming. Kiyoteru _never_ got embarrassed – at least, not in front of me.

Or maybe this was a birthday miracle.

Luka paused for a moment, and then exclaimed, "Oh, I forgot! I wasn't supposed to say anything. Sorry about that. Should we go in?"

The driver's door opened, and out came a blue-haired, blue-eyed man wearing a blue scarf.

"Luka!"

"Ah, Kaito! I forgot. Everyone, this is my driver, Kaito. Shion. Shion Kaito. He's coming."

A reedy child's voice floated out from the car. "Luka-nee-chan . . ."

"Oh, I forgot! My mind is just all over the place today, isn't it? This is Yuki. Kaai Yuki. She's related to Kaito. Come along."

A small girl hopped out of the car. She was cute, in a sort of prim and neat way. As if hearing my thoughts, she daintily coughed.

The driver reentered his car and drove to a nearby parking space.

I watched with mixed feelings – confusion, bemusement, curiosity – as Luka walked up to the gates and typed a code into the keypad. The gates didn't budge. She frowned and tried another code. Nothing happened.

Rin commented, "She's ditzy."

"No, just a little forgetful," Kiyoteru corrected her.

Luka scrunched up her face in concentration.

"Hot," Len breathed.

"Excuse me?" Rin raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, come on! She's a gorgeous, rich, airheaded chick – any guy would go for that. Right, Kiyoteru?" Rin and Meiko simultaneously groaned in exasperation.

"Don't drag me into this!" Kiyoteru hurriedly replied.

"You didn't deny it," I noted.

"I don't go for girls like that."

"What do you go for?" I asked, innocently batting my eyelashes.

Behind me, Rin flicked her brother on the forehead and told him to stop being a conceited idiot. Meiko told her to stop killing the few brain cells that Len possessed.

Kiyoteru pondered over my question for a moment, and then confidently answered, "Well, definitely not any idol. They're all either obnoxious or clueless."

"And which category are you?"

"Neither. I'm a great, down-to-earth guy."

"Obnoxious," the little girl whispered to me. I looked down at her and grinned.

"Yuki, right?"

She nodded.

"I like you already."

"Hey," Kiyoteru butted in. "Don't ignore me."

I ignored him. Internally, I snickered evilly.

This might be a good experience for someone who was so unused to being overlooked. Now he knew how I felt. The twins were always off in their own world, and Meiko was usually too tired or drunk to communicate. Living in my family was no easy task.

Besides, just a few minutes ago he'd been begging not to be dragged into a conversation. So, being the magnanimous and magnificent pop star that I was, I was generously fulfilling his wish.

Luka's driver coughed. He'd finished parking the car and had returned carrying a small, girly, red backpack with the name Yuki printed on it. I hurriedly added, "Oh, and you're Kaito. Nice to meet you." I held out a hand. He firmly gripped the proffered limb and pumped it up and down a few times.

"It's nice to meet you too," he replied in a calm, deep voice. "Yuki has wanted to meet you for so long. You can't understand how annoying she can be, but now that she's met you, she'll definitely stop complaining. Thank you so much."

"Onii-chan," Yuki whined. He winked at her.

"I'm flattered," I told her, smiling in what I hoped was a warm manner. "I don't get to meet fans like this very often. Kaito seems to care a lot about you. You called him onii-chan, so is he your brother?"

"Nope," Kaito answered. "Note the different hair colors. We're cousins. But she somehow manages to mess up all my things and irritate me in ways that only a close family member could, so maybe sister would be a more accurate term."

"Onii-chan, that's because we live together!"

"I know the feeling!" Len yelled. Rin flicked him on the forehead again.

"Stop eavesdropping!" I yelled back.

"Obnoxious," Yuki whispered, pointing at Len.

She really was one smart kid.

"You know what?" Kiyoteru growled. "If you're just going to ignore me, then I'll leave."

He began speed-walking towards Luka. He'd almost reached her when she whirled around, calling out, "I got it!"

Kiyoteru was so surprised that he flinched, tripped, and fell. He ended up lying spread-eagled on the pavement in front of the gate.

"Clueless too," Yuki said, no longer bothering to whisper.

The gates slowly began to open, creaking loudly.

I held Yuki's hand, while Rin did the same with Len, who yelled in protest but quickly gave up. Kaito grabbed his cousin's free hand. Meiko grabbed Len's free hand. Luka helped Kiyoteru stand up.

Facing forward, I said, "Let's go in, shall we?"

~=O=~

First, we got a map. I didn't trust Luka to remember the routes.

"Give her the benefit of doubt," Kiyoteru muttered when I grabbed a map from the entrance booth.

"Oh, a map," Luka exhaled. "Good! I was so afraid of getting us lost."

So much for the benefit of doubt. Well, at least she knew her own strength.

Luka continued, "This is Papa's place, and he made me memorize the roads, but as they say, memory fades."

"Yours especially fast," Len muttered.

I elbowed him.

"What? I'm not insulting her. In fact, I find it attractive."

Rin flicked him in the forehead yet again, and then snatched the map from my hands.

"Hey!" I loudly objected.

"I'm in charge now. I will decide where we go. First . . . the merry-go-round!"

"That's a kid's ride," I said, rolling my eyes. "Are you sure you aren't unconsciously making these decisions based on your own desires?"

"Just be quiet and follow me," she retorted. She set off, dragging Len with her.

The rest of us meekly followed her to the merry-go-round, which turned out to be very close.

"I'll go on," Yuki said, barely able to contain her excitement. "Miku-nee-chan, can you come too?"

I was a sister? Since when? That was so . . . touching. Rin never called me "onee-chan" like that.

"Okay!" I answered brightly, too caught up in the moment to realize what I was getting myself into.

"Have fun," Kiyoteru said, smirking.

Crap.

Well, Yuki was having fun. I decided to act like I was enjoying myself, for her sake.

Yep, all for her sake.

"I'll be on the red fat horse!" Yuki squealed.

"I'll be on the sea serpent," I said calmly.

"I'll be on the boat," Rin decided after some deliberation.

"I'll be on the fish," Luka said, her eyes widening with excitement.

"And I'll be on the road roller!" Len chimed in.

Kiyoteru snorted, and then quickly straightened his face.

"What?" Len asked defensively. "It's destructive."

"It's on a carousel," Kiyoteru said.

"Don't judge. I'm only fourteen, okay?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Don't be sexist," I scolded Kiyoteru.

Len told me to butt out, and then told Kiyoteru to be quiet, but in a slightly ruder tone and with slightly different language. Rin threatened to wash his mouth with soap again.

The blushing blonde-haired boy lifted his chin and stalked towards the road roller. Shrugging, I followed. When we were all settled in, Kiyoteru turned on the machine that powered the merry-go-round. It smoothly glided forward while the wooden statues moved up and down.

In front of me, Yuki began giggling.

"What's so funny?" asked Rin from her seat on my right side.

"The horse looks like an apple."

I glanced at the red horse she was riding on. Well, it certainly had a large belly. And it was shiny.

My sea serpent, on the other hand, was like a . . .

"Leek," Kiyoteru called out.

I've always liked leeks. They're very yummy vegetables. And I had to agree with him.

I did not, however, like his patronizing tone.

"At least it's a vegetable and not a desert that can ruin your teeth and give you brain freeze," I retorted. The carousel turned so that its axis separated us. When we could see each other again, Kiyoteru lost no time in countering my retort.

"At least shaved ice doesn't smell bad when you leave it out."

"It melts! Everything goes bad eventually. Leeks can be eaten without utensils."

"So can shaved ice! You just need a cup."

The carousel finished another half-revolution, and we paused again before resuming our high-spirited squabble.

"But leeks can be eaten without leaving anything behind to wash."

"No one eats leeks whole! It's put in dishes."

"I do! And it tastes very good."

Rin groaned and smacked her own head with the palm of her hand. "You're comparing leeks to ice cream. Does no one else see the lack of logic here? It's like apples and oranges."

"Bananas and oranges," Len corrected her, obviously not understanding the analogy.

"I prefer tuna," Luka said, idly twirling her hair around one finger. She was sitting on the fish next to Yuki's apple-horse.

"Apples are best," Yuki asserted.

"Tuna eat worms, and worms eat apples."

Yuki looked at me. "Is that true?"

I shrugged.

"Don't cut me out!" Kiyoteru yelled from the sidelines.

We ignored him.

"Fruits in general are good," Len piped up.

"For once, I agree with you," said Rin.

"But I like road rollers too."

"Yeah, about that. . . . I agree, but . . . Len, I hate to break to you, but you're sitting in a jeep."

"Am not!"

Yuki wondered out loud, "Are all boys obnoxious and clueless?"

"No, honey," Kaito said.

"And a road roller's not a food," Rin continued.

"Well, duh. Thanks for stating the obvious, sis."

"No, I meant that we were talking about food, and you digressed."

"Don't start using big words!"

"What's 'digress' mean?" Yuki asked me.

"It means to get off topic, something that we do a lot." I gently massaged my temples, which had begun to throb as I strove to restrain my emotions.

"I've noticed that," Kaito said.

"Onii-chan, you were eavesdropping! That's bad!"

"I've been eavesdropping for a while now. It's hard not to hear. You guys have a tendency to yell."

"How did this conversation start?" asked Meiko, swaying on her feet. Apparently, the rush of adrenaline from earlier had subsided.

Luka deliberated for a moment, and then replied, "I forgot."

That did it. I couldn't take anymore.

I jumped off of the sea serpent and quickly power-walked away.

"Miku!" Kiyoteru called out, reaching for my hand.

"I need to use the restroom," I stiffly said, turning around so that I was facing the nearest restroom. "Be back in a second."

When I finally reached the shadowy recesses of the public restroom, I locked myself in a stall, put my back against the door, and took a deep breath.

Then I began laughing.

~=O=~

My laughs have always been strange.

Rin said that they sounded more like gasping than laughing. Len said that they sounded like choking. I would've choked _him_ for that, but Meiko put herself between us and declared that, for once, Len wasn't being rude without reason.

I didn't give a damn if other people thought they were weird, and I made that very clear. Unfortunately, there was this incidence in a restaurant. For some reason, a nearby patron unreasonably assumed that I was suffocating and foaming at the mouth.

How did he confuse liquid milk with bubbling foam? I couldn't understand it. I still don't.

Anyways, the ambulance got called in, people made a scene . . . and, after that, I started laughing by myself.

"Such an idiot!" I burst out, clutching my sides as my body shook with mirth. Everyone around me was an idiot! It was just too funny.

And despite myself, I was genuinely enjoying myself.

Those idiots really knew how to raise my spirits.

When I finally managed to calm down, I slowly opened the stall door and walked out. I closed my eyes, reveling in the warmth of the sunlight, stretched my arms toward the sky, and then opened my eyes.

The first thing I saw was Kiyoteru's face looming over me.

"Are you okay, Miku?" he asked, anxiously running his hand through his hair. "Rin said not to bother you, but it sounded like . . . are you okay?"

I was too shocked to reply.

"Oh, calm down," Rin said exasperatedly. "It doesn't matter if everyone heard you laughing."

"Wait – that was a laugh?"

"Yes!" I shouted. Almost immediately, I clapped a hand over my own mouth.

Kiyoteru turned away.

Yuki tugged on her brother's shirt and whispered, "So onee-chan's not dying?"

"No. I don't think so."

I groaned and put my head in my hands.

A faint snorting noise came from my right. I lifted my head to see Kiyoteru still refusing to face me.

"Kiyoteru, are you laughing at me?"

"N-No!" he said. Then he suddenly let out a series of snorts.

It took me a moment to understand. "You are!"

My embarrassment disappeared. I began to giggle.

Finally, I'd met someone whose laugh was worse than mine.

"Finally, I've met someone whose laugh is worse than mine!" Kiyoteru said in between snorts.

"What're you talking about?" I wheezed. "You sound like a pig!"

"And you sound like a suffocating cat!"

The two of us fell to the ground, clutching our sides.

"Are they okay?" Luka asked worriedly.

"Fine!" I gasped.

"Fine!" Kiyoteru agreed.

"Well, calm down!" Len snapped.

"You look like you're having drunken fits," noted Meiko. "Not that I would know."

"Go on!" I waved them away. "We'll . . . catch up."

"Let's leave the drowning animals to themselves, shall we?" said Len, immediately taking my suggestion. Turning away, he added in an audible undertone, "Weirdos."

"Oh, Len." Shaking her head, Rin followed him.

I was a little surprised that she hadn't argued more. Unfortunately, in my current state, I couldn't speak. All I could manage was a feeble wave.

"See you later, onee-chan," Yuki called out as she and Kaito left.

Soon, they were all gone.

Kiyoteru calmed down a little, and by the time he'd managed to stand up, I felt my breath begin to flow normally.

"That was . . . interesting," I finally said, to break the silence.

"Yep."

I didn't look at him, afraid that I would start laughing again. "So where did they go?"

"I have no idea."

We glanced at each other, surprised, and then broke down again.

Well, a little laughing never hurt anyone.

* * *

**One of my hobbies is laughing until my sides hurt. Try it sometime. Obviously, Miku's wrong here, because i****t does hurt. But let's not judge her since I wrote her that way.**

**Sweet dreams . . .**


	3. Part 3

**************DISCLAIMER: I do not own Vocaloid. Or their songs.**

******Thanks again to all my favorites/followers/reviewers! (See REVIEW RESPONSES below.)**

******I would've updated sooner but, as stated on my profile, school is overwhelming me. -_- Thank the heavens for the weekend. **

**It's beginning to feel weird to not say something at the beginning and end of each chapter.**

**Eh, well, enjoy. And review, please. :)**

* * *

Birthday Luck - Part 3

"Ow!"

"Take a deep breath," I said calmly.

"How am I suppos-ow!"

"I've almost got it out!"

"Well, hurry up!"

"There!" I triumphantly held up the giant splinter of wood.

"How the hell did that thing get in my hand?"

"You slammed your palm into the ground."

"Well, that's because you kicked me!"

"On accident! I was trying to stand up."

"And failing miserably." He rolled his eyes. "How does anyone laugh that hard?"

"Laughing never hurt anyone."

"Tell that to . . . me."

"I just did. Don't make me kick you again."

Sighing, he stood up and brushed grass off of his pants.

"Since we don't know where they are, do you want to go somewhere ourselves?"

"Sure," I answered, trying to calm my pounding heart as he helped me stand. "It's just so weird. Rin usually doesn't fail to remind me of stuff like this."

"It's fine, right? We can enjoy ourselves."

"Yeah, but . . ."

"I get it. You'd rather be with your siblings. Then, we'd better go find them." He began walking away.

"Wait!" I ran to catch up. "That wasn't what I meant."

"So you want to spend time with me?"

"No! Well, not that. But it's not that I particularly want it either."

He raised his eyebrows. I blushed and quickly grabbed his hand.

"Let's go to . . . that thing over there!"

I hastily pointed to a random building down the street.

"The haunted house?"

"Sure!" I said without thinking. Then I hastily amended, "Wait, no!"

"Why not?"

"Let's pick something different." I pointed somewhere else. "How about that thing over there?"

"Miku, that's a trash can. Are you sure you're not just scared?"

"Am not!"

"You sound like Len."

"Do not!"

"Let's go."

Without waiting for a response, he grabbed my wrist and began pulling me towards the haunted house.

"Kiyoteru!"

"If you're not scared, then you should be fine."

"There aren't even any employees."

"Everything's electronic. We'll survive."

I stopped struggling. Curse male idols and their stupidly rigorous workouts.

"Don't worry," Kiyoteru said, smiling tauntingly. "I'll hold your hand if you're scared." I wrenched my wrist out of his grasp.

"In your dreams."

"How'd you know?"

While I swallowed an insult, he went into a small booth nearby. A moment later, the black gates of the haunted house slowly creaked open, accompanied by an ominous moaning sound. I gulped.

Now that I could see it clearly and without any obstructions, the haunted house really did look scary. It was placed in the middle of a small plot of land, which was covered in dead grass, with only a narrow dirt path leading to the entrance. The crimson bricks at the base of one side of the building seemed to be in the process of decaying. Ivy grew along the walls, garish purple flowers sprouting along the sides. A few gnarly trees were planted in a circle next to the wall, and the decaying tombstone at their center was clearly visible. The other half of the structure was sooty black, as if it had been burnt in a terrible fire.

"Don't be a baby," Kiyoteru said, pushing me inside.

I squeaked a little. "When did you get here?"

"I've been standing behind you for awhile already. Go in!"

Without thinking, I held onto his hand and squeezed. He cleared his throat, and then we began walking. The gravel path was unpleasantly loud; every footstep sounded like the crunching of bones.

I'm not easily scared. It's just that something about the supernatural has always seemed extremely _un_natural to me. And unnatural things are scary. People tend to fear what they don't understand, and I'm no exception.

The tree leaves rustled even though there was no wind. I squeaked again.

"They can't start scaring until we're inside."

"Technically, we're already inside the property."

We finally made it to the entrance. I cautiously leaned forward to open the door.

A bloody hand shot out of the doorknob, fingers spread wide as it grasped empty air. I screamed and clutched Kiyoteru's hand even tighter. The hand, as if hearing my voice, quickly withdrew itself.

"L-L-Let's l-leave," I whispered, eyes wide.

"Nonsense," Kiyoteru whispered back. He stepped forward just as the doors swung open. We were met with a hot blast of air and the sight of a giant black bat-like figure swooping down towards us. The figure suddenly stopped in front of us, revealing two silvery fangs, scarlet eyes, and the face of a man on a bat's body. I didn't even have time to scream before it flew up towards the ceiling.

My heart was pounding so hard that I couldn't hear anything else.

"Miku, breathe. In and out."

I tried to follow his instructions.

"That's right. Now keep moving."

"What? I am _not_ going in. What if we get lost?"

"We won't." He pointed at the giant hall just as it lit up, illuminated by extremely realistic skull-shaped torches that lined the walls. "It's arranged like an actual house. We go through all the hallways and explore, and we have to go through all of them, otherwise we can't leave. We have to give our password in each room, so the system knows that we've been in all of them. Besides, I have an infallible sense of direction."

"But-"

"Do you trust me?"

I quickly shook my head.

"Well, too bad. Move."

Gulping, I clung to his arm as we entered the giant entrance hall. The fires in the skull-torches waved side to side, dancing in an imaginary wind.

Kiyoteru pointed to the door directly to our right, and then pulled me forward.

He opened the door.

To my intense relief, nothing happened. I exhaled the breath that I'd been holding in . . . and then the lights flickered on.

A man stood in the center of the room, wearing scrubs and carrying a scalpel. He was hunched over a stone table, on which the corpse of a woman lay. She was rotting; her head was an empty cavity, and there were numerous slash marks on her chest. Blood was splattered on the walls and formed a large puddle around the stone table, especially near the man. He swiveled around, revealing his pitch black eyes, which were like holes in his head.

Slowly, his mouth opened, and he spoke haltingly, "Finally! My new subjects. Come. I've been waiting."

Somehow, the mechanical quality of his voice made the scene more plausible.

Kiyoteru darted forward to the table, where a small keypad was embedded into the stone. He punched in a few numbers, avoiding the grappling hands of the wax doctor. Then he quickly led me out the door.

"See? Room one wasn't so bad. Don't worry; they're all wax or made of some other material."

I grunted, trying to calm my trembling hands.

"You'll see."

He was right. Room one wasn't so bad. The next few were far worse.

But after the first few scares, I had become so frightened that anything more couldn't really affect me, even when we had to walk _through_ rooms to get into a different hallway.

It was all because of room six. That was definitely the worst of them all.

Room six was the kitchen. Unlike the others, the lights in here were turned on when we entered.

The chef was standing next to one of his helpers at the stove. The helper's forearms were both charred from the stove's fire and had apparently released a torrent of blood. The chef held up a bloody knife, brandishing it wildly. On a small counter in the middle of the kitchen, a skinned and gutted pig lay. Pieces of its organs were scattered on the counter and on the floor. The other helper was at the opposite side of the room, reaching into an open cabinet that contained objects such as Doctor's Eyes and Brain of Neuroscientist.

But none of this caught my eye, at least not right away. What really made my skin crawl was the small, decaying, green vegetable lying on the counter next to the pig – a leek, pinned under the handle of a knife. It was chopped, mutilated, and small pieces of it had been thrown around. The blade of the knife still retained remnants of its victim.

It was fake, of course. I would've smelled it if it were real. But still.

The horror!

I immediately ran out the door, trying not to imagine what the rest of the house might be like.

Kiyoteru laughed at me, and then screamed like a girl when an enormous blob of . . . something tried to attack us. I was too numb from terror to react.

After what seemed like hours, we had passed through every room in the accursed house. As we passed out the door and through the gate, images of numbers and giant baby heads and red-eyed animals and people with multiple heads wouldn't stop replaying over and over in my mind.

When we reached the sidewalk, I bent down to kiss the grass.

"Blissful real world!"

"Miku, the ground is dirty."

"I don't care! I'm never going into a haunted house again! Why would anyone want to go in more than once?"

"Same reason as you," he scoffed.

I was puzzled. "Huh?"

He paused, and then cautiously asked, "You've never been in a haunted house before?"

"Yep."

"And I pushed you to go into one of the scariest ones in Japan?"

"Yep. . . . Wait, what?"

He coughed. "Nothing."

"You did _what_? Didn't you know this was my first time?" My voice began to sound shrill.

"I didn't know this was yo-"

"But Rin told you!"

"But I didn't know that it was your first time in a haunted house!" he hurriedly defended himself. "There are others not in an amusement park. Think of it this way: Even though you didn't have beforehand experience to prepare, now all the other haunted houses will pale in comparison!"

I took a few deep breaths, dramatically huffing and puffing. I wasn't actually that upset, but it couldn't hurt to make _him_ think that I was.

"Then you have to listen to me now."

"Okay!" His gaze was earnest, and for a moment I felt a tinge of guilt. I pushed it away.

"We're going there." I pointed upward.

"The sky?"

I slightly altered the direction of my finger and watched, with some satisfaction, as his face paled.

"You have got to be kidding."

"I'm not."

"I'm not going on that thing!"

"But you made me go into that, so I can make you go on that." I pointed at the haunted house first, and then at the roller coaster that rose higher than all the other rides, excluding the Ferris wheel.

"But that thing is potentially life-threatening!" he objected.

"Technically, it's possible to die from shock or fear."

"Really?" He defiantly glared at me. "Name one instance."

"You said you'd listen to me."

I could almost see the internal struggle going on in his mind. Eventually, he succumbed.

"Fine."

I cheered loudly, scaring some birds. Kiyoteru unhappily grunted.

Shrugging, I skipped ahead.

"Wait!" he suddenly called out when we were a few streets away from the roller coaster's entrance. He'd stopped outside the mirror maze.

"What?"

"Can we try this out first?"

"You're just trying to avoid riding the roller coaster!"

"Come on, Miku. It's on the way there. After this, we'll go there first thing. I promise."

While making a disappointed "tsk" sound, I scolded him, "Kiyoteru, it's not good to deny your fears. At least admit that you're scared."

"Fine! I'm scared! Can we go to the mirror maze now?"

Giggling, I ran to his side, watched his face slowly lift with hope, and then answered, "Nope!"

"You little-"

"Teal-haired beauty?"

His face lit up for a moment, as if he'd just thought of something pleasant. I backed away, but not quickly enough.

So swiftly that I didn't have time to react, he grabbed both of my wrists and dragged me into the maze. I screamed and kicked, but to no avail.

Then we were inside, surrounded by velvet curtains and next to a small employee-less counter and a wall made of hanging beads.

"Liar!"

"I'm not lying. We will go to the roller coaster after this. Probably. Now cheer up. Enjoy."

His hand moved, probably pressing a button, and then the lights disappeared.

Something pushed me forward, towards the door, and I felt myself being pushed into the wall of beads.

An instant later, I was on the other side, alone and surrounded by mirrors. The only source of light was the floor, which was lit up by some unknown entity.

It was like the movie set, but ten times worse. I suppressed the urge to scream.

I heard a rustling behind me and whirled around to see Kiyoteru coming into the maze.

Instead of giving into my emotions and slapping him, I calmly asked, "What if we can't get out?"

I gestured toward the seemingly endlessly branching pathways that spread out before us.

"We will," he confidently said, "It's actually not that big. Half of those paths are probably just mirrors. Try not to touch any mirrors, by the way. It's dark to preserve the illusion, but smudges will ruin it."

"I'll try my best," I sighed, still fighting to control my anger.

"Then let's get moving!" he cheered, grabbing my hand and smiling like an excited child. All of my anger disappeared in an instant.

He was just too adorable.

We slowly and silently made our way through the maze. Kiyoteru was surprisingly skilled at recognizing the mirrors. I, on the other hand, couldn't focus long enough to avoid my own reflection.

"Miku," Kiyoteru sighed after I bumped into yet another mirror.

"Sorry! It's hard!"

"Well, if you see that you're walking towards yourself, you should be able to tell-"

"Oh, shut up. You're the one who forced me in here."

"I guess there's no choice then."

Clearing his throat, he reached towards me and grabbed my hand. My face immediately began to heat up.

"Just follow me."

I dutifully trailed behind him, trying to control my pounding heart. He was holding my wrist, so he could definitely feel the pulse of blood as it rushed through my veins and arteries. . . .

"This is kind of like the movie set," Kiyoteru chuckled.

"Oh, yeah. But you're not there in the movie."

"That's true. And you're a helpless idiot."

"Excuse me?"

He cleared his throat again and amended, "In the movie, you're a helpless idiot. In real life, you're . . ."

I breathlessly waited for him to finish his sentence.

"We're here."

"Huh?"

Without speaking, he pushed my head down and pulled me forward. We stepped through a small rectangular doorway into a brightly-lit room. A counter and a potted plant stood in the two corners opposite us, and the door that led outside was directly in front of us.

"Oh, candy!" He pointed at a bowl of candy that rested on the counter. Letting go of my hand, he grabbed a lollipop, tore off the wrapper, and stuck the lollipop into his mouth.

"Wait, Kiyoteru, what were you going to say?"

"Huh?"

"Don't 'huh' me. What were you going to describe me as?"

He cleared his throat.

"Stop doing that," I snapped.

"Do you want to hear the answer or not?"

"Of course I do!"

"Then . . . in real life you're not an idiot, but you are a bit helpless."

Before I could respond, he grabbed another lollipop, tore off the wrapper, and stuck the lollipop into my open mouth.

"I wasn't done," he said, dodging my fists. "I also think that you're smart and beautiful, and your bark is worse than your bite."

I felt my face grow hot. Kiyoteru grinned.

"And you're cute when you blush."

I wrenched the lollipop out of my mouth. "Hiyama Kiyoteru, you obnoxious-"

He put a hand over my mouth. "Clueless idiot? I figured. Think of some better insults."

Nonchalantly whistling, he threw his lollipop onto the potted plant.

"Litter!" I gasped.

"Everyone litters. Look." He pointed at the other plastic sticks and wrappers that were scattered on the soil in the pot. "Besides, those lollipops taste like cardboard."

"Even so," I protested, "littering is bad."

"There will be other people who will throw their lollipops on that plant. One person isn't a big difference."

"There's a trash can right outside."

"Fine, fine." He picked up the lollipop, which was now covered in dirt, and followed me outside. As we threw away our lollipops, he commented, "You know, that's another thing I like about you."

"That's so random," I spluttered, my face heating up yet again.

"As an idol, you're so cheerful and immovable, but you turn into a giant worrywart when you're away from the eyes of the public."

"I am not!"

"That's enough of that," he declared. "So what do you like about me?"

"That's so random," I nervously reiterated.

"You can take some time to think about it. Meanwhile, let's go to the arcade."

Without waiting for a response, he began pulling me towards the arcade.

"Wait! But . . . the roller . . ."

My protests were disregarded. Sighing internally, I gave in.

"Eventually, we _are_ going on that roller coaster," I informed him, closing the door behind me while Kiyoteru turned on the machines. The arcade whirred to life.

"Yeah, yeah." Waving me away, Kiyoteru walked towards a racecar game. He glanced up at me, grinning.

"Best out of three?"

I pushed up the imaginary sleeves of my T-shirt and grinned back at him.

"You're on. Winner buys the loser something from the gift shop."

"Cheesy," he scoffed, clicking on the multiplayer option.

"You scared?" I countered.

His grin widened. "Little girls should keep their mouths shut and listen to the master."

I leaned over the controls. "The braggart should prove his skills by playing."

That shut him up. His eyebrows drew together, and he declared, "Let the race begin."

"With pleasure."

"Oh, shut up."

* * *

******REVIEW RESPONSES:**

******~ Emanon: Ahaha, thanks! Does this count as chaotic?**

******~ LlamasEatingUnicorns: Well, I'm happy to help! XD Lol, and I'm very glad you found my humor humorous. (I generally don't have much confidence in my sense of humor.) Thank you for reviewing!**

******~ sosweetIexplode: *grins back* Thanks for the praise! I mean - cough cough - for the review!**

**I'm not very happy with this part. Michie's not so good at the descriptions. :( When I was reading over it again, I kept wanting to cringe/cry/revise/edit.**

**But changing too much would lead to chain of events which would involve rewriting a whole bunch of stuff, and I'm just not that diligent.**

**Time to start the homework I've been procrastinating on . . . **

**I wish you well and hope that you get more sleep than me tonight. :) ****Sweet dreams. **


	4. Part 4

**********DISCLAIMER: I do not own Vocaloid. Or their songs.**

**Foosball is an unappreciated sport. :P**

**I hope this part is as fun to read as it was to write. :)**

* * *

Birthday Luck - Part 4

Of course, I won the race. And the seven that followed. And the six shooting games. And two foosball games. That's not all – I also won two out of three of the table hockey games.

Yep. All with my own skill. No cheating involved.

Well . . . I might've distracted him a few times. But that's beside the point.

Next, we stopped by the gift shop.

"Are you sure this is okay?" I whispered, tiptoeing inside.

"Stop wincing," he said loudly, strolling past me. "The alarm's disabled."

"What? How? Isn't that unsafe?"

"They gave me the code."

While I gaped, he jumped over the counter, stood behind the cash register, and swept his arms around him in a wide circle. "Choose what you want."

"Huh?"

"Pick anything."

"Really? Anything? I'll get something expensive, you know."

Kiyoteru smirked. "Oh, did I forget to mention? For us, today, it's all free."

"So . . . there was no need to bet on this."

"Yep."

Deciding to take his word for it, I wandered through the aisles, examining each section carefully. Eventually, I settled on three different key chains.

"An orange, banana, and beer bottle cap," Kiyoteru listed while running the scanner over the bar codes. "Nothing for yourself?"

"They _are_ for myself," I replied. "They represent my family. They'll go right onto my cell-phone."

He paused, just about to put the items into a bag.

"Can I add something?" he asked, walking back towards the keychain rack.

"Sure," I said uncertainly. "But what exactly-"

In one graceful motion, he whirled around and held up a tiny pair of glasses.

"Something to represent me," he said, winking.

Then, while I blinked rapidly and tried not to stop remembering the way he'd winked, he scanned the key-chain and dropped into the bag with everything else.

"For you, madam," he said, bowing.

"Thank you, sir," I answered, curtsying in reply.

"Shall we head to the Ferris wheel next?"

"Wait, but the roller coaster-"

I exhaled sharply, smiled, and let myself be dragged outside.

~=O=~

"So," I said, settling into the plushy seat of Capsule #1. "How do we start this thing?"

Kiyoteru screwed his face up in concentration, and then darted towards the control booth, fiddled around with something, and darted back out.

"Hold out your hand!" he called out, just as the door of the passenger car shuddered and began to close.

Startled, I obeyed.

His hand fell into mine, and I managed to pull him in just as the door slid shut.

Capsule #1 rose into the air.

I tried – I really did – to focus on how dangerous that stunt of his had been. What if he'd gotten his foot stuck in the door? What if the capsule had become unbalanced? What if his hand had missed mine?

But somehow, all I could notice that he was currently sprawled across my lap, and that both of us had frozen.

My throat felt unnaturally dry.

Why wasn't he moving?

Was it just me, or was the air heating up?

"U-Uh-" I feebly croaked, trying to get rid of all the awkwardness that was floating around us.

Kiyoteru coughed, hopped up, and quickly sat down on the seat across from me. He studiously glowered at the scenery beyond the window, his cheeks and ears glowing red.

I tried again. "Um-"

"Sorry," he said quickly. He coughed again.

"Y-You . . . Are you . . . Th-That was stupid."

He glanced at me, surprised.

I nervously licked my lips and continued, "Y-You could've injured or stuck, you know? How could you know that I would catch you? A-And there's no one around to help. That was unnecessarily dangerous."

After another pause, during which he continued to stare at me in shock, I opened my mouth to continue.

"Plus-"

"I get it," Kiyoteru interrupted, leaning over and clapping a hand over my mouth. "I'm stupid, obnoxious, etcetera and etcetera."

"Right," I muttered, glaring at him.

This time, he took the hint and removed his hand.

"So what now?" I asked.

"We enjoy the view."

"No – I mean, how do we get out?"

He froze.

Oh my dear leek.

"Kiyoteru," I slowly began.

"Yes, Miku?"

"You do know how to get out, right?"

"Yes."

I exhaled in relief. "Good. How?"

"Someone pulls the lever in the control booth."

"And that someone would be . . ."

Grinning cheekily, he answered, "That someone would be anyone who happens to notice the spinning Ferris wheel and decides to come to our rescue."

My self-control began to fade. "And what are the chances of that happening?"

"Very small, probably." He shrugged.

I inhaled and exhaled, trying to control my temper. "So what happens to us?"

"I guess, for now, we'll just have to enjoy the ride."

I suddenly felt the urge to slap him. "Did you even think this through?"

"Nope. Look, the haunted house!"

That was it. My self-control disappeared. I was going to slap him.

So I slapped him. Right on the face.

"Hey!" he yelled, rubbing his cheek, which had reddened a little from the blow. "What was that for? I need my face to look good for the fans!"

"That was for dragging me around without my consent and then getting us stuck on a freaking Ferris wheel!"

He opened his mouth, closed it, and then mumbled, "Well, I guess I deserve that."

"Thank you!" I huffed, sitting back down. "Now apologize for your unreasonable behavior today."

"Sorry," he muttered through gritted teeth.

"Louder, please."

"Sorry."

"I can't hear you."

"I'm sorry, okay?" he burst out, glaring fiercely at me. "Sorry for dragging you around and getting both of us stuck on this ride. I never realized it was torturing you so much."

I gaped. He was . . . angry? Easygoing, clueless Kiyoteru was angry with me?

"Kiyoteru?" I said, a little timidly.

"I'm listening," he snapped.

"I didn't really – I mean, that wasn't exactly . . . it wasn't torture."

I nervously chewed my lower lip while he continued to glare at me.

"If you weren't having fun, you could've said something."

Now I was feeling a little irritated. Say something? I'd said plenty of things!

And what was with the sudden mood change?

"You're being childish," I pointed out.

"Am I?"

"You are. I made it very clear how I felt."

"Fine," he scoffed. "I guess I was just deluding myself into thinking you were having fun."

"I was!"

"But you just said-" he abruptly stopped and frowned. "Whatever. It's not like I care anyways."

"I don't understand you," I said. My voice shook, and my nose stung a little.

Why did I always get so emotional when it came to him?

His face softened slightly. "Look, I'm sorry, alright? It's just that you should've complained a bit more if you really hated being dragged around so much."

"I don't hate being dragged around," I exhaled. "At least, not by you."

This was strange. Somehow, in just a few minutes, my anger had been transformed to confusion and sorrow and then penitence.

Kiyoteru raised an eyebrow.

"Never mind that," I quickly cut in before he could say anything. "Just be a little smarter next time. Like, don't get us stuck on a Ferris wheel, okay?"

At that, all of his anger seemed to disappear. The frown quickly turned upside-down, and suddenly he was beaming as brightly as the sun. The transition was so abrupt that I flinched.

If angry Kiyoteru was scary, then overly-happy Kiyoteru was terrifying.

"Next time?" he questioned, winking. "I like the sound of that."

"What are you, bipolar?" I retorted, shaken.

"Nah, I'm just a good actor."

That took a moment to digest.

"You were acting?"

"Yep."

I groaned, closed my eyes, and buried my head in my hands.

"Miku?"

"Manipulative jerk."

"Was I really that good?"

"I can't even begin to express my irritation."

"Are you sure that's irritation you're feeling?"

"Positive."

"No amusement?"

"Nope."

He waited, knowingly tapping his foot against the smooth gray floor.

"Well, maybe a little," I admitted grudgingly, cursing his intelligence.

"If it helps, I wasn't entirely acting. I've had a lot of fun today. I'd like to think that you did too."

Exhaling sharply, I lifted my head.

For a moment, my ever-present craving for leeks was replaced by a craving for chocolate. His eyes were like chocolate. They were so alive, and so warm. So very warm.

Thankfully, the craving quickly passed.

"I did," I slowly replied. "I've had a lot of fun too. Thanks, Kiyoteru."

"You are very welcome," he replied, smiling that adorable smile of his.

"Let's enjoy the view, shall we?" I said, coughing and scooting closer to one end of the passenger car – specifically, the end that was further away from him.

He watched me, his lips curved in an amused smirk.

"Wh-What?" I asked uncomfortably.

"Nothing much. You just look adorable when you're nervous."

"Ah, shut-"

Before I could finish the invective, he slid a vibrating cell-phone out of his hoodie pocket and held it up to his ear.

"Yeah? You're done?"

He had a _phone_?

"You had a _phone_?" I nearly screeched.

"Miku, as you can see, I'm in the middle of a conversation. Say that again, Rin."

"You could've called someone to get us out!" I continued. "And since when were you and Rin so close?"

"Sorry, Rin. Your sister's being loud." Kiyoteru held a finger up to his lips, indicating that I should shut my mouth.

"We're almost at the top. Give it thirty seconds."

Give _what_ thirty seconds?

Kiyoteru nodded absently, exchanged a few more words with the party on the other end of the call, and then hung up.

"What was that?" I asked almost immediately.

"A phone call. First, look out the window."

"I want answers! Why didn't you think to call them sooner?"

"Miku, I'll answer everything after you look out the window."

"Fine," I muttered, turning towards the window. "But you'll answer for . . ." I trailed off, my eyes widening with shock at the sight beyond the window.

"So?" Kiyoteru asked. "How do you like it?"

I continued to stare, completely blown away, at the field of green beneath us. But it wasn't the field that held my gaze.

It was the giant sign in the middle of the field. The sign made of teal ribbons that were held down by tiny wooden stakes. The sign that read, 'Happy B-day & Anniversary 5, Miku!'

Around the sign, I could see the tiny shapes of my family and friends: Rin and Len were two tiny yellow blobs beneath the _u_ in my name, and Meiko was a reddish-brown blob beneath the ampersand. Kaito and Yuki – blue and black, respectively – were standing next to Meiko, and the pale pink blob that I assumed was Luka was far away, next to the very first _H_.

My nose stung again.

When? How? Why?

"Who?" I finally asked.

"I had the idea," he answered, conjuring up a tissue out of nowhere. I gratefully took it from his hands and wiped my watery eyes. "Your family was more than happy to help."

"How much work-"

"We tested it out once," he cut in. "That's all. The materials were easy enough to buy. Don't worry about it."

"But why would you do so much?" I sniffed. "It's just a birthday."

"That's not all it is," he grinned. "It's five years after you first came out as an idol."

"But still . . ."

"And two years after I met you."

"Oh, that," I laughed, remembering that day. "Technically, it was two years and a day ago."

"Yeah, well, it's an extra-special occasion, and I thought we should celebrate it with style. And we knew you probably didn't want anything too flashy, so I suggested this. Small enough for you, and flashy enough for the twins and me."

"Look at you, all grown up," I chuckled, glancing back at the sign, which was slowly disappearing from our view. "I remember your first words to me: 'So this is Hatsune Miku? Doesn't look like much.'"

"Are you trying to ruin the moment?"

"You were even more obnoxious back then," I said nostalgically, disregarding his question. "You thought you would overtake me."

"Hey, I'm almost there," he snapped. "Don't get too cocky."

"Can I help it?" I giggled. "I'm the number one idol."

"I'm catching up!"

"Still not number one," I teased, sticking my tongue out.

To my surprise, he looked away and sighed. "It sucks that I can't stay angry at you."

"Huh? Why?"

"Well, you're just too cute."

Wait, what?

Turning back to me, Kiyoteru grinned and continued, "The moment's back."

"Uh . . ." I stammered, struggling to maintain my composure.

"Miku, there's something I'd like to ask you."

"You may speak."

His grin widened. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

. . . What?

_Do not freak out_, I told myself. I would not freak out. I would not act like one of those crazed fan-girls that jumped at Kiyoteru like rabid animals. _Calm down, Miku. _

"Uh . . . I'll think about it," I managed to force out.

His face fell.

"That's a no?" he asked softly.

"No!" I quickly shouted.

"So yes."

"No!"

"Yes or no?"

"Y-Yes!"

"You'll be my girlfriend?"

I buried my face in my hands, yet again. This time, it was to hide the redness that was slowly spreading over my cheeks.

"Sure," I mumbled. "I'll be your g-g-girl-girlfriend."

His reaction was very loud and very unexpected.

"Yes!" he shouted, standing up and rocking the entire passenger car.

I put my hands down to steady myself, and at that moment, his hands cupped my face and forced me to face him.

"Hatsune Miku, you have no idea how long I've been waiting for this," he said, leaning so close that I got cross-eyed trying to focus on his face.

"Same here," I admitted, no longer trying to hide the blush. I closed my eyes. "I've waited for a long time."

He leaned down, and I almost forgot to breathe.

I puckered my lips and clenched my fists, trying to hide my excitement.

A kiss? Before the first date?

Well . . . only because this was Kiyoteru.

His lips had just barely touched mine when the passenger car stopped.

We both froze, and his hands dropped. Together, we turned our heads towards the window.

Sure enough, there were my friends and family, standing on the street and grinning like idiots. And behind them . . .

A flash of light nearly blinded me.

"Crap," Kiyoteru whispered, standing straight.

His cheeks were pink. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to gloat over this fact.

"Crap," I agreed, closing my eyes and wishing that we were up in the air again.

With a loud _hiss_, the door opened, and a horde of paparazzi suddenly materialized onto the platform. The cameras flashed again, and a sea of microphones was thrust towards us. My ears were bombarded with a barrage of shouted questions.

"What does this mean?"

"Are the two of you going out now?"

"Is this in celebration of Miku's birthday?"

"What is the sign in the field?"

"We should've known they'd hear about this," Kiyoteru groaned, shaking his head.

Behind the cameras, microphones, and eager faces, the twins gestured towards me. They shrugged apologetically, and then waved their arms around. I immediately understood.

Thankfully, Kiyoteru was quick to catch on. It only took a few whispered words for him to understand. After he nodded, I timidly slipped my left hand into his right hand, and the two of us stepped out of Capsule #1.

"Quiet, please," Kiyoteru called out.

The questions stopped coming, although a few cameras continued to flash.

Unperturbed, he announced, "Miku and I would like to formally announce that we are indeed dating."

"And any questions you may have," I said quickly, before they could start babbling again, "can be directed towards those people over there." I pointed at my family and friends, who nodded and smiled politely.

Rin and Len winked, and I cried internally. I would owe them so much after this.

But for now, that was not my primary concern. The paparazzi were distracted; all of them were staring at Yuki, who was skipping around with her eyes crossed.

Kiyoteru gently squeezed my hand. That was the signal.

We quietly crept over to the railing and jumped down. The sound of our feet hitting the ground alerted them to the fact that we were trying to escape, and someone called out, "They're running away!"

After that, we ran.

Laughing, I let go of Kiyoteru's hand and _sprinted_ down the street. Kiyoteru paused for a moment to catch the car keys that Kaito threw at him, and then he ran after me.

We weaved through the streets, passing by the gift shop, arcade, mirror maze, and finally the carousel.

"Sometime, we need to come back and have a proper date here," Kiyoteru said. "We only went to four locations, and one of them was the gift shop. That's just sad."

"Agreed," I huffed. "Next time, we're going on the roller coaster. Now go ahead."

Waving good-bye, he ran faster, leaving me with the crowd of paparazzi that was slowly beginning to catch up. My stamina was running low. Well, this was what I got for cheating on my work-outs.

At the gate, I stopped, turned around, and held out a hand. "Stop!" I commanded imperatively.

They skidded to a halt, stumbling over each other comically.

"Thank you for coming today," I said, slowly backing away. "But there's something I must confess."

Where was Kiyoteru?

"The truth is . . ."

Hearing the gentle purr of an approaching car, I smiled.

"I can't answer any of your questions," I finished, turning around just as Kiyoteru pulled up in Luka's car. I threw open the door, jumped in, and opened the window as he slammed his foot down on the gas pedal. "Talk to those people at the Ferris wheel!" I yelled, flashing my trademark idol-smile at the dumbfounded reporters.

Then I closed the window, took a deep breath, and began laughing.

"That was so fun!"

"Have you never run away from paparazzi before?" Kiyoteru chuckled.

"Well, I have, but this was more fun than usual," I confessed. "Maybe because a certain someone was here."

"That's me, right?" he asked, winking.

"Right," I answered, winking back.

"That was a terrible wink."

"If I were you, I wouldn't be talking."

"You got some leftover adrenaline running through you?"

"Probably," I giggled.

"That explains it," he muttered.

"Explains what?"

"You're sassy. Only Idol Miku is sassy."

"Normal Miku is perfectly capable of being sassy," I spluttered.

A helicopter flew past us, heading towards the Ferris wheel.

"I think their rescue team has arrived," I noted, trying to ignore the way he was smiling at me.

"They'll have a hard time getting away."

"These are Rin and Len you're talking about."

"Right. I almost forgot." He frowned. "We never got around to giving you our presents. Rin has mine."

"This is more than enough," I laughed.

"Well, we can do that later. But there was supposed to be a picnic too."

"Then, instead of that, you could treat me to lunch."

"It's a date," he agreed, holding out a hand.

I quickly shook it, and then chided, "Both hands on the wheel."

"Worrywart," he laughed.

"Don't use the same insult twice in a day."

"It's a compliment."

"Doesn't sound like it."

"I would kiss you right now, but you'd probably have a heart attack."

I blushed lightly and replied, "Maybe. So keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road."

"That's my girl. Do you want to sing a song?"

"What? No!"

"C'mon," he said encouragingly. "Asa me ga samete massaki ni omoiukabu kimi no koto . . ."

And all the way down the highway, Kiyoteru sang at the top of his lungs while I pretended to hate the sound of his voice.

* * *

**One part left! Really, it's more of an epilogue, and it's really short - but all the same, please look forward to that! **

**Does anyone want to venture a guess as to how long this entire story was on Word? Or how long it took to write the whole thing?**

**Hint: Both are ridiculously long. -_-**

**REVIEW RESPONSES:  
**

**~ sosweetIexplode: Aww, thanks for reviewing again! Reviews make me happy. XD Yes, time does fly. A lot. 'Specially during the school year. Lol, the leek part was overly dramatic, but actually one of my favorites. I'm glad you liked it. :) Did you guess right? **


	5. Part 5

**********DISCLAIMER: I do not own Vocaloid. Or their songs.**

**I'm sorry for uploading this so late. Sorta. But it's my story, and technically I can do what I want with it, so no one can be angry for slow updates - and really, I should be able to define what's late and what's not. And I never really promised to stick to any sort of schedule, and it's such a short story. So . . . a****hahaha . . . not really sure what the point is here . . .**

**Anyways, here's a short epilogue. Enjoy!**

* * *

Birthday Luck - Part 5

That day was how Kiyoteru and I ended up as Rin and Len's slaves for a month.

Needless to say, it was not fun.

I was used to it. Kiyoteru was not. Somehow, I found myself sandwiched between my new boyfriend, who ranted about my siblings and how they were certainly incarnations of Satan, and my siblings, who ranted about my new boyfriend and how he would make a terrible maid.

And that day was how Meiko met Kaito and ended up eloping with him two months later.

Meiko moved out, but she came over so often that it seemed like she'd never gone. Kaito frequently had to come by and pick her up because she didn't have enough money to get back home. My opinion of him increased with every visit.

It was also how Yuki became a child sensation.

For weeks, children could be seen skipping along the streets of Japan with their eyes crossed, giggling hysterically. Apples became ridiculously popular.

Leeks were still number one, though. Leeks will _always_ be number one.

Luka . . . well, she remained Luka. She was still famous, still – I mean this in the politest sense – vague, and still one of the most sought-after ladies in all of Japan. Len became her biggest fan; he followed her around like a puppy until Rin very, very politely convinced a judge into put a restraining order on him.

~=O=~

We all have our names for that day. I choose to remember it as the best birthday ever.

Rin and Len discovered this little tidbit during their monthly ritual that they like to call Reconnaissance. I like to call it Peeking-In-Miku's-Diary-Without-Permission.

Yes, I have a diary. Is there a problem?

They then spread the word to everyone I know – except Kiyoteru, since I stopped them before they could get that far. And if I have my way, he'll never know, because his ego would inflate like a balloon.

So, you ask, what exactly happened to the two of us?

Well, that's a very interesting story.

But I'll save it for another time.

* * *

**. . . **

**Short, yes? **

******So, I've tried not to be one of those authors **that asks - coughcoughbegscough - ******for reviews, but this _is_ the last chapter. So review, please! **

******Any rants? Complaints? Comments? Constructive criticism? (See that amazing alliteration?) Gushing praise? I accept all of these, and anything in between. :P**

**REVIEW RESPONSES:**

**~ emanon: Awww, thanks! I find this rather refreshing as well. ;)**

**~ red eagle: T.T Your words moved me to (happy) tears. *insert heart here* Haha, I was worried about that scene, but it was surprisingly well-received. :) And I put so much effort into my dialogue; thank you for noticing. XD**

**I will see none or some or all of you in my other stories. :D Thanks for reading! **

**As always, sweet dreams . . . **


End file.
